Bathtub Medley
by Crimson Flame-Blue Rose
Summary: It wasn't always easy on him, this life, this choice; and he hated to think that at any moment the rug could be pulled out from under him and he wouldn't know what direction to take next. Would everything have been for nothing, then? It was ridiculous, he knew, all this coming about during a stupid soak in the tub… StefanxCole.


Stefan hummed as the warm water ran over his fingers, plugging the tub before he dried his hand off with a towel.

After a long, hard week, the Pole had been craving for a nice, hot bath – bubbles and all.

It was one of those rare luxuries that he would save for himself for when things got a little rougher than usual; it

wasn't a matter of getting clean so much as it was to just sit back and forget everything, even for just a little while.

But this time he hoped it would be a little different…

Normally on days like this, Stefan would bathe alone and his lover, Cole, would relax in the living room with one of

his books. Their routine had worked just fine for the both of them, but sometimes Stefan wanted to try

living it up a little – try new things, get closer to Cole and bond even more intimately.

The blonde detective was the more shy and reserved one out the two of them, so it was rare to have the opportunity

to try anything outside of work and the intimacy they share in the bedroom.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained, as it's been said, right?

Stefan grabbed the bottle of bubble bath, squeezing the clear mixture into the filling tub in a wavy motion, being

sure to drizzle it over the majority of the center – especially the foot end where the bath's nozzle was – of the tub to

really get those suds going.

His hands were on his hips as he looked over his handiwork, a hint of nervousness welling up in the pit of his

stomach when he saw how large the white bubbles were becoming as the water level rose…

' _Eh, it'll be fine,'_ he reasoned, crouching down under the sink to fetch a glass jar of bath pearls.

He couldn't remember what scents were in the container, though, he had been too lazy to keep them all organized in

the original packaging. But, on the bright side, they kept the baths spontaneous.

He grabbed two white beads and tossed them into the tub, uncaring if they were vanilla or coconut scented.

Once the tub was almost halfway full, he turned the knobs off before heading into the living room.

"Hey, Cole," he announced as he walked down the hall, pulling his shirt up over his head, "The bath's ready, you

coming?" he offered with a playful grin as he stood in front of the couch.

"Bath?" Cole parroted with a confused frown, lowering his novel to rest on his lap, "Well, I can't right now, I'm

reading," he chuckled, motioning to his book, _The Odyssey_.

"You sure? It'll be fun~" Stefan continued to tease his lover, wiggling his eyebrows.

Cole sunk into the cushions of the sofa, his blue eyes unashamedly watching the brunette; his left thumb stuck inside

the spine of his book as a makeshift bookmark as he draped his other arm across his stomach leisurely.

Stefan had a nicely toned chest and a pair of biceps to match, maybe not as buff as some of the men he saw in

Okinawa, but beautiful and enticing all the same.

A bath did sound nice; he liked being warm and he loved Stefan's company.

But, he _was_ in the middle of something else and he wasn't really in the mood to get wet right now.

How would the both of them fit in the bathtub, anyway?

It was tempting, but he was still undecided.

For now, he decided to play coy.

"Tell you what, you go on ahead and I'll check on you later," Cole offered, a smile playing on his lips in kind.

In layman's terms, that was a very probable 'no', but, he'll take it…

"Okay, but you're missing out on one hell of a party…" the Pole relented with a shrug, beginning to unbuckle his

belt as he walked back down the hall.

Stefan tossed the remainder of his clothes onto the floor of their shared bedroom across the hall before stepping back

into the warmth of the steamy bathroom, shutting the door to keep the chill out.

Truth be told, he was a little disappointed if Cole chose to not join him, but it wasn't entirely unexpected.

It really wasn't a big, at least not on its own, but it was little things like this that made Stefan worry that there would

come a time when he was the only one in the relationship keeping things together.

Cole was the romantic one, and he felt spoiled rotten when the blonde took him out to dinner or started

conversations that he wouldn't have even thought about discussing on a whim.

But he was the sensual one; he enjoyed cuddling, or holding hands, or touching, kissing, and caressing without

meaning it to lead to a moment of passion. He just wanted that closeness, that's all.

It meant the world to him, but he also wanted to know that it meant something to Cole, too…

But, maybe he was just overthinking things, as usual.

He knew Cole loved him, otherwise they still wouldn't be together; or, living together, anyway.

Maybe there were just some people in the world who weren't very physical, he could live with that, right?

Stefan sighed through his nostrils and rolled his shoulders to unwind.

It wouldn't do him any good to worry about stuff like that right now, he had already prepared a nice bath and he

intended to enjoy it with or without Cole.

Grabbing the side of the tub, he carefully stepped into the water and slowly sunk down into a sitting position,

sucking on his lips as the hot water pricked at his skin and made the hairs on his arms and legs stand on end.

Stefan shivered as he settled, rubbing on his forearms as he leaned back.

The water was less scalding now, enveloping him in its warmth and soothing an ache in his knees he hadn't been

aware of until this moment; kneading his fingertips into the deep tissue in a comforting massage.

His eyes slid closed as he crossed his arms over his stomach, his knees still scrunched up due to his legs being too

long to stretch out fully in the tub. It was always a little annoying, but he made it work.

The faint scent of fruit clung to the air, he wasn't sure what it was but it was sweet like sugar.

It was so warm and comfy he had half a mind to fall asleep…

There was a soft knock on the door, Stefan winced when the light blinded him as he opened his eyes, "Come in."

"Stefan?" Cole murmured as he poked his head in, stepping into the room and shutting the door behind him.

"Hey, I thought you were reading," Stefan teased, a smile forming on his lips.

"I was beginning to miss you," the blonde snorted, his hands slipping into his pockets, "Does the invitation still

stand?" he asked, motioning his hand towards the water.

Stefan felt a spike of excitement in his chest, his grin widening from ear to ear almost painfully as it stretched his

face, "Well, _yeah_ ," he deadpanned, his finger curling in a come-hither motion, "Hop in, already."

The blonde snickered at the urgency in his lover's voice, pulling his polo up over his head before making fast work

of his belt and slacks; abandoning his clothes on the floor.

"So, uh, how do we do this…?" Cole asked, his hands motioning from end of the tub to Stefan's waist.

"You've never done this before, huh?" Stefan mused quietly, "It's alright, just climb in and sit – here," he explained

as he helped guide the other man into the bathtub, unable to do much other than grab the blonde's wrist and steer

him until his back faced him.

"That's it, you're fine," he reassured Cole as he grabbed onto the blonde's soft hips and helped him settle down

between his knees in the water, "Wait, what are you doing?" he asked with a frown when Cole suddenly removed

the plug.

"With this much water and our combined weight, it'll get all over the floor," Cole reasoned as the water began to

flow down the drain, a hollow chugging noise resonating in the room.

 _Of course_ his boyfriend would worry about something like that…

Stefan could only roll his eyes.

Satisfied with the water level, Cole replaced the plug and leaned back to rest against Stefan's chest.

"Is that better?" the Pole asked, his arms wrapping around the older man to hug him closely.

"Mhmm…" the blonde hummed as his eyes slid closed, relenting and finally allowing himself to relax.

' _Now, was that so hard?'_ Stefan mused to himself, his fingers combing through Cole's soft hair.

Cole purred at the intimate contact, resting his head in the crook of the taller man's neck, "This is nice."

Reaching over the side of the tub, Stefan grabbed a sponge from the basket that sat on the tiled floor, dunking it into

the warm water before gently scrubbing Cole's chest.

A puff of air, what could have become a laugh being cut short, escaped the blonde's lips as the yellow sponge

tickled the fine hairs on his body, playfully pushing Stefan's arm away, "hey!" he whined.

Stefan laughed at Cole's response, and then chose to plant a kiss at the nape of his neck, grinning silently when his

lover shivered at the touch and craned his neck more as an invitation to continue.

Cole took the sponge out of Stefan's hand, keeping it securely closed in his own before it could be used against him.

His eyes slid halfway closed, enjoying the tender touch of Stefan's lips on his neck as he sucked on his skin, his

hand finding the Pole's and lacing their fingers together, "So, this is what you had in mind? All this time?"

"Well, there was something else," Stefan mumbled between kisses, "but I'm too lazy today to try anything else."

Cole hummed in response, reaching back to touch the hairs on the back of Stefan's neck, his fingertips roaming

upwards to caress his lover's scalp soothingly, "I might be more open to those plans in the future," he teased.

Stefan paused in his ministrations, resting his chin on the blonde's shoulder, "I love you, Cole," he spoke honestly.

Cole blinked as he heard the sentiment, sensing the hardness in the Pole's tone, "Stefan?" he asked with concern, his

hand curling at the back of Stefan's neck, "Are you alright?"

"I miss you, I feel like we never get to do things like this together – not enough, I mean," Stefan continued, his

forehead taking up the space where his chin had rested.

He didn't know where this was all coming from, or why it was affecting him so much today.

Stefan supposed that it was something that he had kept under wraps for some time, and, for some reason, he felt

strangely sentimental in this moment as he sat curled up with Cole; and it made him feel vulnerable.

He hated that feeling, it seemed childish – or unmanly, even?

Now that he thought about it, he couldn't exactly remember feeling this strongly about someone – or the time they

shared together – with anyone in the past.

Stefan really valued Cole, that was the best way he could describe it; and he hated to think that while he was feeling

all this, and begrudgingly thinking about the future, he sometimes worried about what Cole thought about him or

their future together.

It took him a long time to figure out how he felt about men, and, being gay in this day and age…It didn't always

work out. He heard the stories, he knew about the risk.

But, he decided to take a chance so he could be happy, with Cole.

And Cole, on the other hand, seemed so indifferent about the situation that it almost scared him sometimes.

Cole made it look easy.

It wasn't always easy on him, this life, this choice; and he hated to think that at any moment the rug could be pulled

out from under him and he wouldn't know what direction to take next.

Would everything have been for nothing, then?

It was ridiculous, he knew, all this coming about during a stupid soak in the tub…

"Stefan," Cole's soft, calm voice broke him out of his reverie, "I love you, too," he spoke reassuringly, gently

caressing Stefan's cheek, "And, you're right, we should try to spend more quality time together."

Cole had grown concerned when his lover had suddenly gone quiet, retreating into his mind.

Whatever was on Stefan's mind, it had made his eyes red and puffy, but he was still too stubborn to cry.

He would ask what was bothering him, if he could, but when Stefan was keyed up like this, he refused to talk about

it – it was always like that with the two of them.

Stefan smiled, relaxing under his lover's touch before squeezing his arms around the blonde's torso.

Of course Cole cares, why else would he be here?

While it was uncomfortable for him to attempt, Cole managed to twist his hips and crane his neck just enough so he

could kiss Stefan fully on the lips, chuckling when Stefan nipped at his lower lip playfully.

He took that as a good sign.

With a pained groan, Cole turned back around and settled into his seated position, frowning when something caught

his eye. "You have a rubber duck?" he asked as he reached into the wicker basket on the floor and pulled out a

small, cartoonishly painted rubber duck toy, placing it onto the water.

"What?" Stefan asked innocently, "Everyone needs a rubber duck for bath time, right?" he snorted.

"I just…Never expected it," Cole mused as he pushed the bath toy along the surface of the water with his finger,

watching as it bobbed along.

Stefan reached forward and grabbed the toy before it could disappear into the soap suds, placing on top of Cole's

knee, " _Quack_ ," he squawked, causing Cole to burst out laughing at the unexpected sound.

"Come on, you try," Stefan challenged the blonde.

"N-no!" Cole struggled to speak through his giggle fit, "No, I'm not going to say it-" he was cut off by an

embarrassing squeak that passed his lips as Stefan tickled him, "Stefan-, Stefan, no!" he cried.

"Okay, you win!" he relented, trying to catch his breath, "…Quack?" he attempted, though less animated than his

playful partner.

"Not bad," Stefan deadpanned lamely, jumping when Cole squeezed a ticklish spot behind his knee.

"Well, you can't blame me for trying," the blonde spoke in mock hurt, grinning nonetheless.

"And I have to say it wasn't bad for your first try, thanks for playing," Stefan continued to tease his lover.

Cole sighed in relief as the pains in his stomach from laughing subsided, his hands joining with Stefan's underneath

the water's surface, resting his head in the crook of his lover's neck.

Stefan squeezed his hands over Cole's knowingly, planting a kiss on his left temple.

He concluded that today's date was successful, and he could only wonder what the next would be like.

After all, it was better to wait and look forward to something good, rather than fear for the future.

\+ . + . + . + . + . + . + . + .

Hello, everyone!

Long time no…Write!

I apologize if this story seems a bit stiff, it's been some time since I've written a fic; not since The Kitchen Witch

back in February, I believe. But, I still do have a long list of ideas, so I'm sure I'll get back into practice soon.

I wrote this as a birthday gift for a friend; I hope they get a kick out of it as much as I did!

I personally love bubble baths, and I thought it was high time to write a fluffy LA Noire fic featuring one.

To me, a bath is not only relaxing and cleansing, but also personal and very therapeutic; and I'm not entirely sure if I

did a decent job trying to convey that atmosphere or experience, but I think I did well enough giving Cole and

Stefan's relationship more emotional depth.

Does anyone even remember bath pearls?

When I was a kid, before bath gels, bombs, or salts, my family used liquid dish soap for bubbles

(the poorman's bath), and my grandma was lucky to have a jar of bath oil beads – they were shaped like black seals,

blue whales, and yellow rubber ducks. They were more fun to squish than let melt.

I'm not even sure if you can buy those anymore, ah well…

At any rate, I'll try to get another fic or two posted in the coming weeks, but it'll start to wind down as the

convention comes up. And once it's over, I'd love to get back into writing full-time again.

Until then, enjoy!

Lin


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